Pepperwood & Knight: When Chemicals React
by MayaLala
Summary: Detective Julius Pepperwood has been injured on the job so his sexy assistant Jessica Knight nurses him through surgery and fever induced fantasies. Can the two keep their hands off one another long enuff to realize they can also solve the mystery at the chemical plant?
1. Chapter 1

Pepperwood held the hankie to his leg, pushing down on the pain. His assistant was speaking with the desk asking yet again how long it was gonna take for them to get to her boss's leg.

"You don't understand, he is bleeding onto the floor. Look, there is actual blood spots under him."

Pepperwood cringed at the eyes he now felt looking at him with sympathy.

"He needs to see a doctor right now."

"Like I told you before, we are slammed right now from a chemical fire. If he is not in critical condition, he can wait with the others."

She turned in a huff and returned to her seat next to Pepperwood.

"Sorry boss, I guess you're gonna have to sit here a bit longer. Can I get you anything" she said looking up into his eyes with her giant blue orbs that sometimes scared him with their clarity.

"No doll, I'm good." Of course he was lying. He actually was feeling light headed and the blood on his hands and legs was starting to make him feel nauseous.

"You don't look so good. You are turning really pale. Here, let me see if I have something to eat in this bag of mine."

Pepperwood was all too familiar with Jessica's bag. She had often times saved the day by pulling out a roll of duct tape or sewing kit just when they needed it. Her bag deserved security clearance for all it could do for espionage around the world.

"Yeah, I remember now I packed us some lunch for the stakeout in case we couldn't get away."

In true form, she pulled out a small cooler from her bag the size of her actual torso. Inside was a sandwich for each of them, some grapes and homemade cookies.

"Now eat" she told him forcefully. He couldn't quite do it. He didn't want to touch the food with his bloody hands and he was feeling too tired to get up and wash them. He looked at her pleadingly from under his baseball cap.

"Come on dollface, help a guy out."

"OK, you big baby" perfectly understanding his puppy dog eyes as well as the dangerous situation she felt like he was now slipping into. She held up the sandwich to his mouth while he took a bite. "Now, you're gonna eat all of this food while we wait for the bozos that run this hospital to get their act together or I'm taking you home myself to stitch that leg up!"

Two hours had passed and Pepperwood was now resting on Jessica's shoulder. He had eaten his lunch and she gave him two Tylenol while he waited. She was worried about the swelling but the cut had stopped bleeding.

Finally fed up she made a decision. She was going to take Pepperwood home. She had worked in a vet office for a short time and had coerced the doctor to teach her how to stitch the dogs and cats. She practiced at home from time to time on raw chicken just to keep her skills in tip top shape in case of incidents such as this.

"Pepperwood" she shook him. It's time to get up. Come on, I'm taking you home.

Her apartment was small but neat. It smelled like baking and roses, just like she did every morning when she showed up for work. Pepperwood always envisioned her flying to France to mix her own perfumes using actual cookie extra in her hand made parfume.

His arm was around her neck as he hopped over to her couch. Before he sat he realized he was covered in blood and didn't want to get it all over the place. She saw his dilemma and went in the other room coming back with towels and blankets to lay on the couch.

"Lay down now. We are gonna need to see what you did here."

He laid down on her soft couch that enveloped his body like a hug. He was so very very tired for just sitting at the hospital all morning. He was dizzy as well and feeling really thirty.

Jessica seeing him lick his lips came back to the coffee table with a pitcher of water and a glass. "Here, whenever you need it. Now lie down."

"You are one bossy lady right now."

"You are one stupid man right now."

"Yeah, you got me on that one."

That morning they had been watching a cheating husband come out of his mistresses house. Jessica had been taking photos when the man got out of range. Pepperwood had grabbed the camera from her and run across the street before the man could see him. Hiding behind a tree he zoomed in on the guy just as he turned around and saw Pepperwood. He began to run.

He still didn't know why he did it. Maybe it was all that training on the force in Chicago but he started chasing him. The guy was in great shape. Pepperwood was no sloucher. He had ton ten situps just this morning. Not too shabby he thought.

Turning into an alley, the man hopped over a cyclone fence as if he was filming a parkour video. Pepperwood not to be out manned shimied up the fence as well and hopped over only to get caught on the metal teeth at the top. He felt them slide through his pants and rip down his upper thigh like a knife. The pain was ridiculous and the sound of the blood dripping out didn't help. Jessica came around and saw him hanging by his thigh and immediately swung into action getting him down within a minute. He muttered under his breath "I got this cupcake" the whole time. He swore she pulled a ladder out if her purse although his memory was a bit foggy.

Now he sat on her couch feeling like he might puke while also looking down the front of her dress while she examined his leg. Jessica Knight had a stellar rack. It could defy gravity as he had proven on several occasions where they had to climb under trucks or run after bad guys. Pepperwood had made it his mission in life to see if those boobies ever moved, or jiggled, or danced, or saluted at attention. The day they did, he would make sure he was there. He was pretty sure he could die a happy man after that.


	2. Chapter 2

Pepperwood woke in the dark feeling confused as to where he was. He couldn't figure out how to sit up and how to roll over. His body ached all over. Suddenly there was light and something cool on his forehead. Jessica was there saying things to him that he couldn't understand.

He awoke later. This time things were clearer. Jessica was wearing a white hat and dress. Her dress was cut dangerously low. He stared at her chest waiting for it to pull down exposing a nipple as she washed his forehead off.

"Mr. Pepperwood, I am gonna have to cut off your pants to clean your wound."

"OK sweetheart, you do that now."

He could feel her hands on his pants as she cut them off without moving his body. Her hands were cool on his skin. He was so hot right now and sweating. Oh how her hands felt so good on his hot skin.

"Hey darling, don't mind my friend down there. He's kind of always at half mast waiting for a friendly gal to shake his hand."

He felt the cool cloth on his forehead again and saw her breasts were very near his face. Like a bad boy he reached up and squeezed one. Finally, he felt their firmness. They were perfect. Like he always knew they would be.

He could feel himself harden at the touch and then he felt the cool sponge washing his legs. "Oh yeah baby, you got the magic touch I tell you."

"Mr. Pepperwood, you are such a naughty boy!"

"You sweetie, you have no idea how much I want to be a naughty boy."

He woke later to Jessica in pajamas putting a straw in his mouth telling him very firmly to "drink this NOW".

"OK, I will, OK, god I'm so hot."

"You're gonna be fine Julius. You're gonna be fine."

He woke again in the morning. The light through her kitchen windows showed her sitting at the table eating breakfast and reading the newspaper.

"Good morning Boss" she firmly said to him. "You ready for some food?"

"Ugh, OK, ugh, I need to go to the loo."

He felt weak but he was definitely stronger today than yesterday and he started to stand up. That's when he realized he was wearing nothing below the waist. He grabbed for the blanket at the last minute and quickly wrapped it around himself.

Taking a quick peak at Jessica, he saw she was reading the paper and nothing seemed amiss.

When he came back from the bathroom she had eggs and toast on a plate sitting next to the couch. There was a cup of strong coffee, just the way he liked it. He didn't understand how she did things without him seeing. How did she make him breakfast so fast when he just had to drain the main for a quick sec.

"Thanks." She was a pillar of salt that gal. A pillar of salt.

They spent the next hour poking through the paper handing sections back and forth to one another as if they were married. Spending as much time as they had together in cars or vans watching other people live their lives had taught them a few bits of each other's quirkiness.

For example, Jessica peeled her apples. It drove him nuts to watch her take out a little pen knife and carve the peel off an apple without breaking the skin. When she was done she had this long spiral apple peel that she always gave to him. Then she would cut her apple up into sections and daintily eat them.

She had learned from him that he was practically blind on sunny days. Without his sunglasses he was quite capable of running into a telephone pole walking down the street. She had learned this from him when he had dropped his sunglasses getting out of the car once, then stepping on them. They were on their way to a meeting and he ran smack into a mailbox walking up to the house, knocking the wind out of him.

Well, he let her think it was from the sun. Really it was because she had been walking ahead of him in a very short skirt and had bent over to smell a rose. He had caught sight of her underwear and ran smack into the mailbox. Quick on his toes from all of his years on the force, he thought of the sunglass idea before she caught on. She bought it hook line and sinker. Old Pepperwood still had the touch.

"Well Boss, what should we do today? You want me to head to the office and work on the accounting. I could do that for a couple of hours and then come back to change your dressing."

Hearing her say "change your dressing" sent some shivers up his spine. He remembered last night grabbing at her breast. Wait, had that happened? He couldn't remember really.

"Yeah, that sounds good. Check the messages too."

"Sure thing. I can stop at your place and pick you up some clothes."

She left soon after, gently closing and locking the door behind her. He had just taken some tylenol as well as some anti-biotics that she for some reason happened to have. He leaned back on the couch and took the front page of the paper up again. Dawson's Chemical Plant Burns to Ground, Arson Suspected.

He couldn't concentrate on the paper now that he was alone. His mind kept wandering back to Jessica last night wearing that white dress and cap. Why would she change into that to give him a sponge bath he wondered? He looked down at the bandage on his leg noticing that it actually wrapped around his upper thigh and his Johnson was laying right on it. How did Jessica Knight get that on last night without touching his junk.

Trying to solve the mystery put him at half mast again and he went back to remembering that dress with the nipple almost falling out of the top. He pictures his hand going up the skirt and realizing she wasn't wearing any underwear. He rubbed at her slit while she washed his legs. He leaned back on the couch with his eyes shut picturing her doing bad bad things to him that could have jeopardized his wound if she wasn't very very careful.


	3. Chapter 3

Pepperwood was starting to get antsy. He had done the crossword puzzle and watched the news on the TV. Everything was focused on this chemical fire. They interviewed the managers that helped people escape the blaze and lawyers representing the Highland family dynasty that were currently flying down from New York to check on the clean-up process. He heard the keys in the door and sat upright.

Jessica walked into the apartment carrying a grocery bag and some file folders.

"Hey Boss, how are you doing?"

"Never been better. Well, I have been better but I'm doing pretty good."

He walked over to the kitchen to help her unpack the groceries and was disappointed to see so many vegetables and fruit. He had been hoping to see some real food in those bags as he was famished.

Pepperwood had a towel wrapped around his waist since he had no clothes to put on. He assumed she had cut them off and thrown them away last night. He didn't actually know what had happened. She must have gotten quite an eyeful he chuckled to himself.

Jessica took her magic bag and pulled out some sweatpants and t-shirts for Pepperwood. "This is all I could find at your place Boss. I cleaned up a bit too knowing you weren't gonna be there for a few days."

He perked up thinking that he got to be near her for what she was now calling days. He was definitely hoping to see that sexy nurse come back.

"Now, go lay down on the sofa, I need to check your stitches."

He followed her instructions realizing that the effort of standing in the kitchen was now making him feel woozy. Laying back down on her pillow couch he quickly began to feel the need for sleep.

"Doll, you think we can do this later, I'm suddenly kinda tired." He drifted off before he heard her answer.

He woke to her wearing the white dress again without the hat. Her hair was down out of its usual bun, cascading over her gorgeous pale mounds still barely staying under the fabric of her dress.

Her face was close to his thigh as she carefully examined the tiny stitches she had sewn the night before.

Focusing on the stretch of the fabric and the hopes for a glimpse of nipple he managed to say "Think I'm gonna live nurse?"

"Mr. Pepperwood, I am concerned that your wound is not draining correctly. We might have to put you in a salt bath soon."

"That sounds nice, sweetheart. A nice bubble bath. Especially if you joined me in case I slip or something" he winked and grinned. Julius Pepperwood was funny, that he knew.

He laid his head back on the couch and felt her hands wrapping his leg tightly with bandages. Occasionally he could feel her knuckles graze his balls. A few moans escaped his mouth he was sure she didn't hear. He was back at half mast and back to snoring loudly on the couch.

He awoke to the smell of food cooking and the view of Jessica Knight sitting primly at the table looking over papers. She had let her hair down and was wearing an apron with colorful fruits. Her glasses had fallen down her nose and she would push them up occasionally. Man, she was quite a good looking dame he thought.

"Hi boss. I made us some dinner. Liver and onions for you."

"What the hell woman, why would you make me that!"

"You lost a lot of blood yesterday and you need iron."

"I haven't eaten that since I was wet behind the ears."

"Well, you're gonna eat it tonight!"

He shook his head slightly realizing she made him kind of nervous sometimes when she spoke to him like that.

He got up wearing his sweatpants and a clean shirt wondering when he had changed into them. He sat at the table as she slid over a folder to him.

"Hey, you got a beer in that fridge of yours for me?"

"No, you cannot drink alcohol with the antibiotics I gave you this morning."

"Oh dear god. How long am I on those horse pills?"

"Ten days."

He hit the table with his fist. This was gonna be a long ten days.

"Boss, you need to read that." Getting up herself she fiddled at the stove and came back with a plate of food consisting of a steak, potatoes and a salad.

"That doesn't look like liver Ms. Knight."

"I was kidding Julius. It's a Tbone."

"Now that's a dinner!"

He hungrily devoured his dinner smacking his lips as he chewed. Jessica ate a salad with a piece of bread. He shook his head wondering how she walked on those gams with only some vegetables in her.

Feeling better from the food he opened the folder she had given him. Inside were the photos he had taken at the stakeout yesterday of the sleezeball who got away. There were more pictures of wealthy familes from weddings announced in the newspaper.

"I can't concentrate on this. What are you trying to show me?"

"You don't recognize the man in the photos?

Sometimes she would look at him and cock her head sideways as if she was trying to understand him. She did that now. Leaning over the table, she put her cool hand on his forehead. He blinked hard at how the touch instantly put his body on high alert.

"OK, that was enough talking for the night. Off to the couch you go again."

"What are you talking about, I'm fine" he waved her off.

"I said get on the couch."

He didn't have the energy to say anything back. Instead he got up and suddenly felt faint. She caught him as his knees buckled and she yelled loudly into his ear "Julius."

He pepped up at her voice and grabbed his nuts to make sure they were still there. Legs straightened he let her walk him over to the couch where he fell onto it. She lifted his legs up and tucked a blanket around him. He could smell her. It made him wish he had a cookie.


	4. Chapter 4

Jessica Knight scrubbed her bathroom. Her rubber gloves squeeking against the tile counter as she took a toothbrush to the grout. She had cleaned the shower, door and floor til it shined and sparkled like a diamond. She polished the mirror and looked at her reflection for a moment.

She was semi attractive she thought as she turned her head sideways. Her blue dress under the apron she wore was flattering. She didn't understand why she never had dates but assumed that the one, as in the one, would simply find her one day. It was taking quite awhile but she had faith.

Meanwhile her boss, Julius, was asleep out on the couch in her living room. The last couple of days with him had been interesting to say the least. She had never seen a man so pathetic. That first night in her apartment was intense while she sewed up his wound and he mumbled dirty filthy things to her while flailing in a fever. She knew that was always bubbling under the surface with him but he seemed to keep it in check when they were together.

What she hadn't expected though was that after cleaning his wound, sewing him up and wrapping it in a bandage, that she would literally have to come into the bathroom and reach down into her panties and finish what Julius' words had began. She was damp and swollen as she repeated his filthy dirty words in her head and then muffled her moans until she was released from the throbbing.

She noticed her face heat up at the memory. The embarrassment of Julius knowing she had done that made her almost sick to her stomach and yet she was pretty sure the experience would be filed away for future use when she needed it. No one had ever spoken to Jessica Knight that way.

Checking her work was complete she put the cleaning materials away in their plastic box under the sink and she took her apron off and walked back to the kitchen to hang it up.

Julius was still asleep. She could see from just walking by that he was hot as his brow was sweating again. She got a clean wash cloth and ran cool water over it. Ringing it dry she walked back over to her boss and laid it on his forehead. Worried he was going to get worse, she stood up to retrieve the thermometer and felt his hand on the back of her thigh. Frozen she looked over her shoulder at him and saw he was still asleep breathing deeply if not actually snoring.

Pulling from his grasp, she walked to the bathroom and opened the cupboard. Her leg where he touched her was tingling and she could tell her chest was heaving just a bit. Calm yourself Jessica, he's just a man. You can control this.

Returning to Julius she put the thermometer in his mouth and wiped his head trying to cool him. His hand that had grabbed her earlier was laying to his side. Sitting on her feet waiting to find our how high his fever was, his hand moved slightly bumping into her chest. She smiled now knowing that he was probably doing this on purpose.

"Julius" she whispered. "Julius are you awake?"

"Yeah doll, I'm awake. Where am I?" His eyes were still shut and he looked parched. She took his water glass with a straw and brought it to his mouth. He drank long and hard never opening his eyes. She retrieved his medicine and came back forcing him to swallow them.

"You're at my house. Everything will be OK, you just have a fever from the wound."

"No Jessica, please don't leave." His voice sounded desperate to her. She put her hand in his and wiped his brown.

"You're going to be OK Julius, you're just sick." He squeezed her hand and brought it to his lips and kissed it.

"Your skin is so soft Ms. Knight." He smiled and fell back asleep.

He was sweet like this. His face was soft, his forehead unfurrowed, his lips in a small smile. She could picture him as a little boy tucked in his bed with a teddy bear. He could have a lot of potential if he let others see him like this.

She took the files she had brought from the office and laid them out over her table. She had photos of the Highland family members laid out on one side and a woman that worked at the chemical plant on the other. There were also newspaper clippings of other fires at Highland buildings across the U.S. Something seemed off but she just didn't have enough information.

Grabbing her purse and a snack, she wrote Julius a quick note and left with her camera.

Julius woke covered in sweat. His clothes were wet, his blanket was wet and he was famished. Sitting up slowly to avoid dizziness he surveyed the small apartment looking for Jessica. He found the note on the table...

Dear Julius,

I went to dig up some more information on the Highland family at the chemical plant. Hoping to get some photos as well. Stay put. Do not get up. Please just rest.

-Jessica

"No" he mumbled to himself. She had left without him and he didn't like her out in the field alone. She stood out like a ballerina at a wrestling match. Granted he had seen her use it to her advantage when she had batted her eyelashes and shot a killer smile towards a lonely security guard but that was when he was with her to protect her. This was unacceptable.

Getting up and looking for his cell phone, he realized he simply could not do anything until he ate. He felt like he hadn't eaten for days. Not knowing what day of the week it was, he perhaps hadn't eaten for days.

After a couple of sandwiches and some weird bluish milk, he felt better and knew he should get out in the field with Jessica. Keep her out of danger. He stripped down to nothing and threw his clothes and sheets in the laundry and did his best to clean up with a wash cloth type shower making sure his wound stayed dry.

While waiting with a towel around his waist for his clothes to dry, he perused the file Ms. Knight had given him earlier. He saw the newspaper clippings and photos with names circled in red. He found a piece of paper and pen and started taking notes. Now he knew what she was trying to show him. Damn he wished he could find his cell phone. He needed to know if she was OK.

The buzzer went off in the dryer and he retrieved his clothes and began putting them on. He only had sweat pants but it would have to do. He still couldn't find his keys to his car or remember where his car was.

He heard keys in the door and walked quickly towards it. She walked through it startled to see him standing so close.

"Boss, you're up! You must be feeling better."

"I am. Where have you been? You left me that cryptic note but you didn't say when you would be back."

"Julius, you have gotten yourself all worked up, you need to sit down and rest that leg."

"Ms. Knight, I asked you where you have been. You know I don't like you going out in the field without me. Are you OK?"

"Yes, I am fine." He seemed a little overbearing right now. She put her hands on his shoulders and pushed him back towards the couch slightly.

His body was acutely aware now she was touching him and his nerves stood at attention. She was wearing a yellow dress with a sweetheart neckline. He could see the tops of her breasts and they were dangerously close to his chest. For fear of embarrassing himself, he turned and sat on the couch.

He felt the burn instantly and grunted loudly grabbing at his leg.

"What happened" she shrieked running towards him.

He sat on the couch holding his leg and wincing in pain.

"Stand up now Julius" she commanded which he did while breathing quickly through his mouth. She pulled his sweatpants down nearly taking his underwear with them.

"Geeze woman, slow down, if you want it that bad you can just ask" he said winking at her hoping to lighten the mood.

Her face turned crimson in color and she huffed angrily at his suggestiveness.

Looking at his wound she huffed angrily and yet still deeply blushing "Julius, you have split your stitches. I am going to have to sew these up again."

"Oh damn, I had no idea. Hurts like a mutha...sorry doll, hurts pretty bad too."

"Well serves you right getting up and moving all around the apartment when I told you to stay put."

"Well, I'm tired of sitting here!" He shot her a look he hoped was endearing but probably just looked pathetic as the burn from the stitches was definitely affecting his cognitive thinking.

She left and came back with a sewing kit. Fearing the pain, he began to babble like a baby "ugh, could, well, I mean, doll, look, should" and then sitting up stiffly "where is my phone woman, where did you put my phone?"

"You don't need your phone Julius, you need to calm down."

"What I need is a drink Jessica Knight. I need a damn drink!"

Her body softened at that. She looked into his eyes and saw his fear. Walking into the kitchen she took out a bottle of scotch and a glass with ice in it and brought it back to him.

"Here, this is gonna hurt so you probably should have a couple of these first."

Relieved he slammed a shot back and relaxed into the burn in his stomach that creept up his neck. He chuckled at the position he was in right now with her. He was gonna get drunk while she literally sewed up his leg, right next to his johnson that had basically stayed at half mast the entire time he had been laying on her couch. He had lost a little bit of control being in this woman's lair and he didn't mind, at all.

"Go to it woman. I'll just be sitting over here having a drink."

"Alright Julius, just let me know if it gets to be too much and I'll take a break."

"Please, I used to be a Chicago cop, we ate bullets for breakfast" he chuckled light heartedly while also wincing in pain. He was hoping she would change into her nurses outfit. Had that been a real thing he wondered?

She looked into his eyes and smiled a genuine Jessica Knight showstopper. He took a deep breath and grabbed the side of the couch tightly as her needle plunged into his leg. "Holy Mary Jesus woman, Oh Lord take me from this paaaaiinnnn!"

Jessica Knight grabbed his leg tightly to keep him from flailing. "Julius, drink more or we will never get this done."

"You don't have to ask me twice honey" as he grabbed the bottle from the table and poured himself two fingers.

"I went to the fire" she said as she continued working hoping to distract him from what she was doing. "I saw the damage and took photos. It definitely looks like arson according to the detectives on sight."

"How did you get them to admit that?"

"I asked them."

He looked down at her. Her black hair flowing down her back, her plump pink lips and shiny white smile. Those detectives were probably eating out of her hand.

"I also saw a couple of Highland family members unloading boxes from an office. There was an insurance adjusting team and quite a few news channel camera trucks. And, our friend that jumped the fence...he was there as well."

At that Pepperwood's ears perked up. That's right, he was a Highland. He remembered that now. That meant he was diddling with his mistress when the fire started. Mental note. Sounds fishy.

Leaning back onto the couch, he was instantly startled when her hand slipped and ran right into his junk.

"Oh, I, oh, so sorry. My hand slipped."

"Yeah, it's Ok. When are you gonna be done" he said with his jaw tightened shut.

"I am almost done, hold still."

He concentrated with all his will against the pain and the impending hard on that was stirring behind his boxers. He pictured his granny naked, his baseball, salad dressing...anything. Jessica Knight was not something he could be this vulnerable near all smelling like cookies with milky white skin. Wait, no, go back to the alphabet, "fuck" he screamed out loud. It was hurting bad. Any second he was gonna scream like a baby. Pounding the side of the couch now..."fuck me, oh god, this is it, I cannot hold it in any longer, Jessica, oh god."

Covered in sweat, red faced and heart racing, he fell backwards onto the arm of the couch, passed out cold from the pain. Amazingly he held his drink up not spilling a drop while he gently snored himself into a deep slumber.

Jessica wrapped his leg with banadages again noticing the tightness in his underwear but telling herself that was a perfectly normal reaction to minor surgery. Taking his tumbler from his hand, she drained its contents. As her nerves began to calm, she wrapped him in a blanket. His hair askew from sweat and his natural curls, she couldn't resist moving it a bit off his face. His warm skin spread through her fingers and touched her tenderly. She watched him sleep for a bit before she walked to the bathroom ...and locked the door behind her.


End file.
